Album Review: Whack World by Tierra Whack

Couldn’t let 2018 pass without remembering one of the most, imaginative, inspired, and out-there projects of the year. Philadelphia rapper Tierra Whack released Whack World, a fifteen-minute mini-album of sorts, with an accompanying music video. Don’t let the short run time on this project trick you, as Whack fills the project back to back with her personality and creativity. This almost reminds me of a Quasimoto project in the way that the surreal production and content sounds like it was created in a completely separate world from ours. From the hilarious concepts on songs such as Dead Pets, where Whack eulogizes her dead dog, to more the more topical, and playful Cable Guy, Whack showcases both sonic and conceptual versatility on this mini project. The short run time works to Whacks advantage; establishing herself within strict creative limitations, Whack utilizes the time to the very last second, as she chameleons in texture and content from one minute to the next. Another aspect that really made this project special, is its cohesion. Definitely, due to the short run time, Whack leaves the listener wanting more, as many of the songs could have easily been a full three or four minutes. However, it is the limitations on the songs that draw out very potent, comedic, intimate performances, and material from Whack. Tierra brings the audience along through a funhouse of vignettes, from her fantastic dreams to her most unsettling nightmares. Far from being underbaked, this mini-project makes a bunch of emotional and conceptual pit stops, plowing through Whack’s biggest desires, and most terrifying insecurities. This project is a beautiful, and eerie manifestation of Whack playing on her terms, to create a project that is incredibly striking, and unapologetically unique. Best of all may be the fact that Tierra knows her own pathway to success, and it is in her whacky world through which she will pave her own way. As she raps only 30 seconds into the project “best believe I’m gon’ sell if I just be myself”.